This proves to be a welcome delay because we spend the rest of the evening into sunset in this quiet prairie paradise, listening to meadowlarks and watching clouds roll over the land in the setting sun as bison settle in for the night.

June 9–11, 2024

Leaving home mid-morning, we drive the ten hours to Theodore Roosevelt National Park’s South Unit arriving at the Painted Canyon Nature Trail just before sunset. Upon entering the parking lot, we are immediately greeted by a lone male bison grazing just off the road—a promising sight for our wildlife adventures ahead. The sinking light casts long shadows in the striped badlands below as we stroll along the overlook, drinking in the prairie sun. The endless grassland dances in the golden light.

Night falls and we make our way through the rustic town of Medora to the park entrance in search of our campsite at Cottonwood Campground. Again, three bison lumbering through the trees welcome us as we arrive at Campsite #5. We pitch our tent and make ready for an early sunrise the next day.

But the weather has other plans. Around midnight a large thunderstorm rolls in drenching the land for the next four hours. We wake up to a gray cloudy sky. Half disappointed at missing a sunrise but half relieved to fall back asleep, we decide to wait out the storm. Around 6am the storm lets up, but the sun is already fairly high in the sky poking through holes in the clouds. Eager to explore the park, we continue our drive along Scenic Loop Drive, stopping occasionally to photograph roadside bison, prairie dogs, and turkeys near Peaceful Valley Ranch. The prevalence of wildlife already starts to feel normal.

Scenic Drive Loop provides many opportunities for hiking and viewpoints, so we choose the short Boicourt Trail and Buck Hill as morning excursions. Boicourt Trail is a 0.3-mile walking path overlooking the badland valley below—a good introduction to the park, but not worth lingering. Likewise, Buck Hill is simply a 0.2-mile walk. The novelty of Buck Hill is its prominence as the second highest point in the park, revealing sweeping 360-degree views of the surrounding land. Atop Buck Hill, we once again run into a lone bison quietly grazing. Our presence pushes him down the valley in search for solitude.

Content with our brief expedition in the South Unit and hearing the sister unit is a bit more photogenic, we pack up our gear and head an hour north to the North Unit. But not before stopping at the South Unit Visitor Center and the nearby Maltese Cross Cabin, made famous by Roosevelt’s ranching days. As an iconic landmark, this cabin would travel from Missouri to Oregon before eventually settling back in North Dakota in 1959. Visitors can walk inside the cabin and see artifacts of a simpler time out on the ranch. Though Yellowstone is the first park, history tells us this remote wilderness in North Dakota was actually where it all began—the inspiration for Roosevelt’s lasting legacy of the national parks.

In the North Unit, the looming clouds once again unleash a deluge rushing us to pitch camp at site #33, a first come, first served site next to the Little Missouri River in Juniper Campground. To stay dry, we decide to take the Scenic Drive road and scope out the extent of the North Unit. After 14 miles, the road ends at Oxbow Overlook, a beautiful vista peering over the Little Missouri River’s windy bends. By this time, the rain has slowed down to pockets of mist so we risk a one-mile hike to the highly-recommended Sperati Point, offering equally—if not more—scenic views of the river valley. Our shoes quickly cake with bentonite clay on the slick muddy path, but with moments of sun to lift our spirits, we are grateful for the chance to get out on a trail and immerse ourselves in the landscape.

On our way back along Scenic Drive, we stop at the Caprock Coulee pullout to hike Buckhorn Trail in search of prairie dog towns. However, our plans are soon halted as a group of bison block the path north. Not pressed for time, we pick our way around the blockade and find a perch uphill to sit and wait out the herd. This proves to be a welcome delay because we spend the rest of the evening into sunset in this quiet prairie paradise, listening to meadowlarks and watching clouds roll over the land in the setting sun as bison settle in for the night. What began as a steely morning turned into a breathtaking evening—a magical moment not soon to be forgotten.

The last day in the park brought an early sunrise at 5 a.m. We drove once again up Scenic Drive, this time to River Bend Overlook to catch a timelapse of dawn over the valley. Blues turn to purples, then pinks, then a dash of yellow as the sun crests the horizon bathing the hills in light, the river still cooly reflecting the sky above. With the overlook to ourselves, we gather a few more photos and return to Juniper Campground to pack up.

Curious about the Elkhorn Ranch Unit, we drive home along an alternate route to stop by the old stomping grounds of Theodore Roosevelt. The rough, overgrown dirt roads have us wondering if we are lost, but sure enough we arrive at Elkhorn Ranch. Unsure of what to find—maybe an old homestead or barn—we take to the one-mile path and into the unit. Unfortunately, we did not do our homework and soon find nothing to see in this small, obscure unit, save a few foundation cornerstones that once held Roosevelt’s ranch house. A little disappointed we head home, but the sting is soon forgotten amidst the other memories of wide open vistas, grazing bison, and picture-perfect sunsets found in this historic wilderness.